Tiwary counts on IPL success

Three years ago,Manoj Tiwary was all set to don national colours during the ODI tour of Bangladesh before a career...

Three years ago,Manoj Tiwary was all set to don national colours during the ODI tour of Bangladesh before a career-threatening knee injury during practice on the eve of his debut saw him heading home for more than eight months of rehabilitation.

On Sunday,as the 24-year-old ran from square leg to midwicket,diving to his right to send Kings XI Punjab skipper Yuvraj Singh back,memories of that tour would have crossed his mind. With two half-centuries under his belt in the IPL so far,Tiwary is hoping that things finally start moving for him.

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The 2007 Bangladesh tour will always be in my mind. I see it only as a positive thing and on Sunday also,my approach was the same. Getting Yuvraj was crucial for us. The lights here in Mohali are a bit low and I had to cover a long distance while watching the ball, said Tiwary,who also starred with the bat in the match,scoring 75 runs off 47 balls.

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The Bengal right-hander,who made his India debut in 2008 in Australia,played only one game then and was sidelined due to a shoulder injury. But a hundred on debut in Irani Trophy later that year saw him claiming a spot in the team for the Emerging Players Trophy in 2009,an experience Tiwary rates highly.

I was very disappointed (after being dismissed by Brett Lee on the Australia tour). Sachin Tendulkar spent some time with me after the match and told me about his first dismissal in international cricket. For the past four seasons,I have been playing with Sourav Ganguly on the domestic circuit and he does the same. On Sunday,he kept telling me to wait for loose balls and later I gained momentum, said Tiwary.

He was also injured in IPL 2009 which ruled him out of the Champions Trophy. But Tiwary is eager to make a fresh start. My team mates are supportive and we keep talking about who will make it to the Indian team first. I am just concentrating on my cricket, said Tiwary.